July 02, 2025

Goalie Dan Vladar joins Flyers with 'a chance to become our No. 1,' GM Danny Brière says

The Flyers signed Vladar to a two-year deal in a search of goaltending help. He'll be competing for a crease that appears very much up for grabs.

By Nick Tricome
PhillyVoice Staff

Sergei Belski/Imagn Images

Dan Vladar saw opportunity in Philly, Flyers GM Danny Brière said.

The Flyers had limitations on what they were willing to spend on goaltending. Dan Vladar, all things considered, probably had a limited market himself, but did see a chance in Philadelphia, Danny Brière said.

"Dan Vladar told us very early on that he saw an opportunity," the Flyers' general manager explained Tuesday in Voorhees after the first few hours, and signings, had come and gone in free agency. "He wanted to come in and compete in Philadelphia, so we jumped on it."

Which led the two parties to reach a two-year, $6.7 million contract ($3.35 million per), and create a competition for the Flyers' net.

"He has a chance to become our No. 1," Brière said. "Depending on how he plays, how our other guys play...The one thing, at the end of the year when I met with our group of goalies, I told them, 'You have to be ready at training camp.' I said, 'We're probably gonna go out. This wasn't good enough last season. We're probably gonna go out and bring in some reinforcements, and you're gonna be in a battle, all of you guys.'

"It was really clear right from the get-go, and we hope that Vladar comes in and brings a little bit, or a lot of competition to the group, and they have to fight for it."

It'll be an open field.

The 27-year-old Vladar, as the "reinforcements," posted an .898 save percentage in Calgary last season, with a 12-11-6 record across 30 appearances (29 of them starts). For his five-year NHL career, he has a 49-34-16 overall record, an .895 save percentage, and a 2.99 goals against average. Vladar has also yet to play more than 30 games in a season.

The total body of work so far is pretty underwhelming, but it's also going up against Sam Ersson, who's had stretches of solid play but yet just as many that have set him back; Ivan Fedotov, who hasn't really found his NHL footing yet; and Aleksei Kolosov, who came over from Belarus shrouded in mystery over what his status within the organization actually is, struggled, sat for weeks at a time, and still remains a mystery as to where he really stands.

And between those latter three, they all had a sub-.890 save percentage last season, with Ersson exhibiting the most durability, but only at 47 games played and through injury struggles.

Eric Bolte/Imagn Images

Sam Ersson has been the Flyers' leading goaltender for the past two years, but has had rough stretches that have prevented him from becoming a lock.

The Flyers knew they were going to need to upgrade their goaltending somehow this summer, even if it only meant an improvement to a more stable tandem rather than a traditional starter and backup setup.

They're looking to Vladar now to at least present them with some kind of step forward in that regard, presumably running with him and Ersson out of the gate.

"Ideally, it would be having a good tandem," Brière said of how he would want the Flyers' goaltending structure. "Whoever that is."

"But how many times, how many teams go with only two goalies?" Brière asked at another point. "Not too many of them. You need three, four goalies. So my message to them is, 'It doesn't matter where you slot in right now. Come in, be ready, and when it's your turn, you gotta perform.'

"I hope we can create that environment that every single night, they're battling for their spots. We're gonna need at least three goalies, maybe more. We know that, and I think Vladar helps put us in a better position."

But while likely biding time to better.

With each of the Flyers' free agent signings on Tuesday, term was the priority for the organization, Brière said.

Salaries might have trended a bit higher, with Vladar getting $3.35 million per year and depth center Christian Dvorak $5.4 million for just a single season, but the contracts were written up that way so the Flyers could maintain better cap flexibility down the road, Brière said.

They also need to make sure that paths can stay open for their prospects who are on the way.

For goaltending specifically, the Flyers have their two main prospects in the crease, Carson Bjarnason and Yegor Zavragin, moving along in the development pipeline for the long term.

But for immediate short-term help at the position, Brière said the Flyers preferred a one-year deal. However, that ask narrowed down their options in a market where the more high-profile goalie names available were after anywhere from 3-5 years. Jake Allen, for example, got a five-year, $9 million contract to stay with the New Jersey Devils, and Thatcher Demko signed a three-year, $25.5 million deal to remain with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Flyers ended up on two years for Vladar, in a situation where he has much to prove.

"We realized to get some help, we needed to step it up a little bit," Brière said. "But when he told us that he wanted to come, we jumped on it."

Now the Flyers are hoping he'll help provide some kind of answer.